A total of 29,390 barangays in the country are currently cleared from illegal drugs, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) disclosed on Thursday, Jan 9.
In a statement, the PDEA said the barangays cleared from illegal drugs represent 69.97 percent of the total of 42,002 barangays in the country.
PDEA said that these barangays were previously classified drug-affected and underwent the Barangay Drug Clearing Program (BDCP), and were declared drug-cleared by the Regional Oversight Committee on Barangay Drug Clearing (ROCBDC) after careful deliberation and validation.
Led by the PDEA regional director, the ROCBDC is composed of regional representatives from the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Philippine National Police (PNP), Department of Health (DOH) and local government units (LGUs).
A barangay is declared cleared from illegal drug activities after it complies with the standards of Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) Regulation No. 4 Series of 2021, or “Sustaining the Implementation BDCP and Repealing for such purpose Board Regulation No. 3 Series of 2017.”
However, the PDEA revealed that 6,113 barangays (14.55 percent) nationwide remain drug-affected, meaning that these barangays have reported and validated presence of Persons Who Use Drugs (PWUDs), pushers, drug den maintainers, coddlers, protectors, financiers, cultivators, manufacturers and others.
“Out of all the barangays nationwide, a total of 6,179 barangays or 14.71 percent are drug-free or barangays that have been vetted and confirmed by ROCBDC as drug-unaffected, while 320 barangays or 0.76 percent are drug-unaffected or barangays that have never been plagued or beset by any illegal drug activities,’’ the PDEA said.
In 2024, a total of 1,314 barangays with drug-affected status, including 69 cities and municipalities, were declared as drug-cleared.
Through the BDCP, the PDEA had reduced the country’s drug-affectation by taking away drugs from the people and taking people away from the lure of illegal drugs through supply and reduction strategies.